Falchion Tossed Aside Adventure
by 4fireking
Summary: Ian and Henrietta are the first of a large army they've built to stop an army who appear to be looking for what they want: to be memorable like the heroes of Zofia in the past. Can Ian succeed being a leader and can Henrietta succeed finding treasures for her new friends.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem

 **This is the second story I'm collaborating on with CuddlyChristina. We promised it would be longer than ten chapters this time. I'm very excited about this story because it would be the first Fire Emblem fanfiction I have a chance to finish.**

XXX

Why do people act the way they do and why in all of Zorif do there have to be so many armies against one another? Henrietta Fallon would never know but she was a discoverer.

She had been practicing a few spells when she heard the sounds of a battle underway, and decided to have a look for herself.

There was a man fighting three other men with swords. The three men were clad red and wearing strong helmets.

Almost immediately, Henrietta ran over to the sole man and asked, "Mind if I help out?"

Just from looking at her he could tell she would be very helpful in this battle. Henrietta opened her spellbook and cast an ice arrow spell on the enemies. Her spell knocked the wind out of one soldier as he floated off the ground before falling hard back down.

"Nice shot!" the man exclaimed.

"No problem." Henrietta replied, smiling a bit.

He didn't see many wizards around her but that spellbook of hers saved his life. He was indebted to her but at the moment he couldn't just help her unless she came with him to a kingdom ruled by nefarious men and soldiers who were following a man who only wanted to take things but it was never enough.

The other two were no match for the wizard and her new ally, either. Ian had hard spots and soft spots. He tried speaking sweetly to the only conscious soldier there but pinched his cheek so he would tell him faster where his leader is.

"So your name's Ian? Nice name." she said.

Eventually the soldier revealed the leader's location.

Ian rewarded him with nothing but not putting a noose around his neck for serving that vile tyrant. He walked to the South where the location was only to find Henrietta following him.

"Hey, do you serve a kingdom or something?" she asked.

" Yes. I serve an army called Strike Blade Zofia. We welcome any person who wants to become a recruit."

"I'm genuinely interested in that." she said.

" It's a long road to camp. Your feet will feel hot and you might get a few blisters on your feet. What's worse than that is enemy soldiers after me. I'm hopeful your interest takes us to my camp."

"I will do just that." Henrietta replied, offering her hand for him to shake.

Ian did just that, and after they shook hands, they were on their way to camp.

Something bad stopped them from getting to the camp. It was a poor person hung by the hands to a branch by rope with chains around her feet. Ian didn't know it yet but this was a hybrid of a human and an animal and a potential ally.

"Are you alright, miss?" Henrietta asked, rushing over to her.

"I...I think so. But...I wanna be free! Untie me! Hurry!" the woman exclaimed.

The mage looked over at Ian and nodded, before the two proceeded to help the woman out. She was free. She scratched her animal ears and shook her animal tail once she was free of that trap. No mere human would take pity on a creature such as her.

"Do you have a name?" Henrietta asked.

"My name's Rica; you got any names?" Rica replied.

"I'm Ian, and this is Henrietta." Ian told her.

Rica had a very strong sense of smell. She smelled blood coming from Ian's hands.

" You two were creating bloodshed on people I can only assume were your enemies. May I please come with you so I can also bring bloodshed on those despicable humans?"

"Uh, sure. But whatever you do, don't kill our allies if any of them are human like me and Henrietta." Ian replied.

Rica ended up nodding in agreement; and with that, the trio went on their way.

Meanwhile, a band of soldiers falling short of an army found the dead soldiers Ian and Henrietta defeated with swords and magic.

"Where are those scumbags?" the leader asked.

"I'm not too sure, captain, but from the looks of it, their enemies seem to be pretty tough." a soldier replied.

"Is that so? Then we must find them at all costs, and take them down." the leader said.

The other soldiers agreed.

Their leader would use them as pawns to bring out their enemies and then shed away their strength until he was cocky enough to get up close and finish them off himself.

"Is that?!" Henrietta asked.

"Are those more of these guys?" Ian added.

"It's time to kill!" Rica exclaimed.

Rica finally showed Ian and Henrietta what her powers were. She transformed into a tiger of a snow coloured pelt with black stripes on her back. In her vicious form she stampeded towards the enemy soldiers.

She then mercilessly tore through them with her claws, and even bit at one of them with very sharp teeth. As they fell before her, the duo were amazed at her abilities, and were confident that she could be a much-needed asset.

What they didn't know was her weakness. A soldier with a sword attacked her first. Against an opponent that lead an attack first she was confused and just moved away not knowing when to attack.

"I think there's something wrong." Henrietta said. "Do you think we should help her?" she asked Ian.

"Definitely." he replied, nodding his approval.

And with that, they got their weapons ready to help out Rica.

Ian stood on the right side of the solider before cleaving his sword into the solider. With that single strike the soldier went down.

Henrietta summoned a fireball at her enemy, almost burning him alive. This caused Rica to notice, and once she was finally focused, she took on the last remaining soldier, pouncing onto him and mauling him.

Rica couldn't believe the final blow was delivered by her claws. She turned from a person left to die to a fighting animal.

Once all the enemies were done for, Rica returned back to her normal form. She looked over at Ian and Henrietta and said, "I'm hungry."

This caught both of them off guard, and Ian rubbed the back of his neck and said, "Right now? I'm sure there might be rations when we get there."

Rica exclaimed, "But I wanna eat right now!"

Henrietta shrugged and said, "Okay, if you say so." before turning to Ian and asking, "Got anything for her to chow down on?"


	2. Chapter 2

**What I love about a second chapter is I don't have to put disclaimers anymore. Thank you CuddlyChristina for writing with me this chapter.**

XXX

Ian had some sandwiches in his pocket in wrap and a hook he could use to catch fish in a stream. It wasn't much though for her. Once he forms an army he would need to hire a chef for his soldiers.

As Rica ate, she said, "I'm always prone to getting hungry after I finish fighting. I don't think I have that much metabolism in me."

"Do not worry, you should develop and maintain one." Henrietta replied.

"Really? Okay, I'll try." she replied, nodding.

Ian was happy his two companions were getting along with each other. He went from a man struggling against a couple of soldiers to a strong unity with two strong girls.

The trio would talk about their pasts, their interests, and their motivations, until they found their destination. "Well, here we are." Henrietta said, getting a closer look with her binoculars.

"Whoa! Are there more people we can meet?" Rica asked.

"Hopefully." Ian replied.

Ian would find a great soldier for his group named Alexander Hawke. Although this member would be a stubborn person for the group to get along with his unwavering loyalty would help move them to greater plains and fight better enemies.

"So what brings us here?" Alexander asked. He and his group of friends - Lola, a female bard; Mackie, a male mage; Drake, a male thief; and Tonya, a female knight - were all present.

"You must be the traveling warrior and his team that we were talking about; I am Ian, and these are my friends Henrietta and Rica." Ian replied.

"Really? That's cool; I look forward to our adventures." Alexander said with a small grin.

Ian was glad to have more allies but the food cost would be much higher and it would sadden him watching more people being slain on the battlefield.

"I really hope we watch our fundings and budgets." Henrietta told him.

That was exactly what Ian was saying. Not only was she a good caster of magic from books but a telepathic in Ian"s mind.

"Hey, how'd you know my thoughts?" he asked.

"Honestly, I was just as concerned about the necessities for our camp as you were." Henrietta replied.

This caused him to smile, prompting her to smile back as well.

Ian with his small army of eight people including himself went to a building that had rooms for them to rest for the night. It was a long day fighting soldiers and getting people to fight with him and all Ian wanted to do was lay his head on top of a pillow.

While everyone else chose to sleep, Henrietta, on the other hand, chose to relax in the inn's hot springs before turning herself in for the night. Of course, she didn't realize that Rica was already there taking a long soak until she noticed her.

Regardless, the two struck up a conversation together, until Rica asked, "Do you think he's cute?"

"Who?" Henrietta asked.

"You know, Ian." the beast girl replied.

"I guess...but I don't think I'm romantically interested in him. It's too soon." the mage said. "Though I wonder...why aren't you in bed?" she added.

"I just wanted a bath before hitting the sack." Rica replied.

Henrietta nodded, before the pair finished up and returned to their rooms in order to sleep.

Ian wasn't so lucky as to talk to a girl like Rica and Henrietta. He was admiring a flower a blacksmith made for him as thanks for the money he gave him. He was sensitive to this flower said to be enchanted so it could never die.

"Hey, what's that you got?" Alexander asked.

"It's a flower; a blacksmith gave it to me as a gift." Ian replied. "It's pretty unique." he added.

"Really? Why so unique?" the warrior asked.

"It doesn't wilt, as long as it's protected from harm." the other man replied.

Alexander felt really stupid now for asking him that question. He had another question though this time more considerate of Ian.

"Can I please hold your flower?"

"Yes, but be careful." he replied.

Alexander gingerly took hold of the flower, and was mesmerized by its beauty. "Looks gorgeous; maybe I can give this to Tonya as a little gift." he said.

"I...I don't think that can work. To be honest, it's not just for her, but for all of us, as long as we make sure it isn't destroyed." Ian said.

Alexander was surprised, before facepalming himself with his free hand, before giving the flower back to him.

"Hey, if it's a present for someone you really want to show feelings for I can go out now and give you a good present for you to give to her." Ian said.

"Why? I'm just a guy going off to war with you." Alexander said.

"Besides, I might not even get that opportunity to get her a gift if I die in battle." he added. "But I will tell you this: Tonya's a pretty good cook, and she always wanted a book of recipes."

"Sounds pretty cool." Ian said, nodding in agreement.

If there was a person he could ask for help on recipes from a book it was Henrietta. She was probably an excellent reader and she has shown him she has a very strong memory. What Ian didn't know was she was in the hot springs.

Of course, she had finished up and was asleep in her room. When Ian knocked on the door, she took notice, and answered the door. "Ian? Is that you?" she asked.

"Yeah, and I was wondering if you can recommend any recipes to Tonya." he replied.

"Sure." she said, nodding.

Eventually, she went over to Tonya's room, and after knocking on the door, the knight answered. There, Henrietta gave her a list of complex but delicious recipes that she could try to make.

"My personal favorites of these recipes are the ones made of ingredients that only grow around once a year," Tonya said to Henrietta.

"Maybe you should make that recipe and share it with everyone under Ian's lash. Not that Ian is a bad guy but if you want to make food try thinking of the rest of the group." Said Henrietta.

"Sounds pretty good to me." Tonya replied. "Thanks for the helpful advice." she added with a smile.

"No problem. You should go back to your room and get some sleep, by the way." Henrietta said.

"Fair enough. Goodnight." she said, nodding before leaving the bedroom.

Everyone went to sleep after Henrietta helped Tonya. Everyone was still as a rock and enjoying the nice breeze of the cool night air.

By morning that fresh air turned into a sun temperature no man or woman should ever be sleeping under. Ian woke up feeling like a snail from how much irritation the sun gave him.

"Good morning." Henrietta's voice called out. "My god, it sure is hot out there." she added.

She was able to help Ian out of bed, and asked, "Ready to fetch the others?"

"More than ready." he replied as he stretched.

They figured the first one of the group they would fetch would be Rica. If they thought they were hot she was splashing herself constantly with water and racing to a fan to keep herself cool with all that fur absorbing the sunlight.

"It's so hot! Hot hot hot!" she exclaimed.

"Any ideas on how to help Rica out with the heat?" Alexander asked as he entered the room.

"Yeah, 'cause it's scorching out there." Mackie said.

Ian only knew the places where it wasn't so hot. That place was in the woods where they may find a waterfall and maybe a stream to help keep their bodies cool and hydrated.

"If only we brought swimsuits with us, then it might be easier..." Lola said, before adding, "...but then again, skinny dipping wouldn't hurt, right?"

"Skinny dipping?!" Henrietta asked, a bright blush on her face.

"I'm sure we might have some swimsuits on us." Ian said.

Henrietta didn't know if she should be happy Ian cams prepared or think of him as a pervert for buying swimsuits for girls. When she saw the swimsuits though she thought they looked nice.

She was able to find herself a one-piece fuchsia swimsuit, while Rica obtained a gold two-piece bikini. Tonya, on the other hand, found herself a one-piece pink swimsuit, whereas Lola got a revealing black two-piece bikini.

Rica was noticeably jealous that Lola was more curvaceous than her, but appreciated her swimsuit nonetheless. Tonya was seemingly embarrassed with how her breasts were the smallest of all the girls.

Ian was also jealous of Alexander because he was better looking in his swim trunks than him. Ian was suppose to be the acting captain of their squad and yet the image he imagined himself charging was more an obese man only running because he was after the food cart.

It wasn't that Ian was fat, although if he were there would be more of him to love and he could laugh at himself at how he brings joy, but when it came to his weapon he had to be agile and quick on his feet. Weight was a factor to how he moves.

The guys were pretty built, nonetheless, and they chose their own swimwear that were bound to flatter them. Henriette blushed when she found Ian in a pair of dark red swim shorts, and wanted to compliment them.

"Ian, I think you look great. Not to mention you're built, too." she told him.

"I do?" he asked, before a small blush appeared on his cheeks. "Thanks..." he said, a small smile on his face.

"I think Rica looks really good in her swimwear." Mackie said to the beast woman.

"Abolish all thoughts of me looking good right now before I pound you." Rica threatened.

Tonya and Lola tried not to chuckle, and maintained their composure.

The group were then able to find the stream they were looking, and once they were in their swimwear, they began to swim and hang out.

The girls were the ones who mostly went underwater in the water while the men raced doing strokes. The ridiculous thing about it was their swimsuits were so heavy from all the water caught in their swimsuits and the boys seemed to keep going because their speed was evenly matched.

"Hey, I was wondering..." Drake said. "...is there a chance we have to keep traveling to our camp after this?"

"Are you kidding? It's too hot out for us to keep going; besides, we needed to cool off anyway." Alexander replied.

Rica was able to lead a game of Marco Polo with the other women, until Henrietta chose to dry off and admire the sunny weather.

Once she was dry and her mind wasn't boiling she pulled out a book to read from it. Her reading took her fifteen pages beyond what she originally believed she could read.

"Hey, what are you reading?" Mackie asked as he got out to dry off, before sitting next to her.

"It's a book detailing the story of Prince Marth." Henrietta replied.

"Really? Looks like a good book to me; can I read it with you?" he asked.

"Maybe." she said, shrugging her shoulders. "Just don't get the book wet." she added.

"So I should read this book once we are all settled in our rooms for the night. Thank you Henrietta."

"And thank you for coming to see me. I know how much you would rather keep trying to win Rica's heart."

"She's pretty headstrong, but she sure is cute." Mackie said.

Henrietta chuckled a bit, before she replied, "I think the two of you might get along well, right?"

"We'll never know." he said.

Henrietta kept her word letting Mackie read her book after they had an evening dinner with the rest of the army. She was going to teach him everything there was to know about Mackie.

"I'm surprised to see that both mages here are getting along pretty well." Tonya said.

"So who's Marth?" Drake asked.

"He's a well-known hero, yet there are actually more heroes like him." Henrietta replied.

Drake and Tonya wondered at some point they would meet a brace and strong warrior.

"Who knows? Maybe we might encounter those affiliated with Ylisse." Alexander said.

"Like Prince Chrom and his family?" Ian asked.

"Perhaps." Rica replied, before digging into her dinner. Henrietta looked over at her and thought to herself, 'Rica's a pretty big eater; thankfully, she's still fit as a fiddle.'

"Maybe Rica and I can be a powerful team of fighters," Mackie said.

Rica was too busy stuffing her face to care about Mackie or anything he was saying about her.

Of course, Henrietta tapped her on the shoulder, and caused the beast girl to notice. Rica looked over at Mackie and grinned. "A team, huh? That sounds awesome in my book!" she exclaimed.

"I smell me a future romance." Alexander said with a grin, before Drake playfully swatted him upside the head. "We've just met these guys a day or two ago." he told him.

"Oh yeah, I forgot." the fighter said, rubbing the back of his head as he chuckled.

Ian also chuckled seeing how being swatted at could make someone smile. It was what it was with this team.


	3. Chapter 3

**In two weeks I'll be going on vacation so continuing this story with my coauthor might be difficult. I am just happy though for the present and that I can display this third chapter. Thank you CuddlyChristina for helping making this story possible.**

XXX

After dinner, everyone was able to retire for the night, and got a good night's sleep in the process. By the time morning came, it was Alexander who woke up first thing in the morning, and decided to fetch his friends.

"Hey, good morning, Drake! Will you do me a big favor and help me find Lola, Mackie and Tonya? I'm sure they'll be waking up sooner or later." he asked.

As Drake yawned, he nodded and replied, "Sure, as soon as I'm ready."

Alexander didn't know why Drake was so slow at helping his friend when all his other friends were hard to find. He also was slow getting dressed in his armor and putting his weapon on his back.

Eventually, Drake awoke Tonya and Lola, and Mackie was able to surprise them by arriving in the room saying,"Good morning, guys. Sleep well?"

"Yeah, we sure did. Thanks for asking." Tonya replied as she and Lola were in the midst of getting their armor on.

Henrietta, having already awoke, had already awakened Rica, and as the two exited their rooms after getting dressed and putting on their armor, the beast girl let out a long yawn.

She wouldn't be yawning for long as villagers were running frantic outside. They were running around like this because a grave threat was drawing near, an army of unfathomably high number of units.

"Well, this isn't good. You guys got your weapons ready?" Ian asked.

"Yes, we do." Henrietta replied, as she and the other allies were equipped with their weapons.

"Let's do it!" Rica added.

A soldier who wasn't thinking about who he was fighting stepped into the inn with a feeling he would find the army in there. They indeed lurked in there. One of the members, Rica, leaped out and attacked in full transformation.

Another soldier was caught off guard when Henrietta cast a petrification spell on him, while Drake was fighting a third soldier, giving his enemy a few jabs with his dagger, before stabbing him in the chest.

Tonya had brought out her crossbow - which was rare for a knight to use - to shoot down a few more soldiers with, whereas Mackie used a thunder spell on his enemy, giving him quite the 'shock'.

Ian was having a battle with what was the most elite soldier so far. He slashed his sword in an arc for Ian's chest, but Ian jumped away from the blade. Ian's next move was clearing his sword for his opponent's elbow. His opponent did a very skilled backflip over Ian's blade.

Alexander was able to jump in and help out, and with that, he and Ian would team up together to take the strong soldier. Though the warrior took a small blow to the chest due to him not dodging quickly, he was able to attack him with a single swipe of his axe, which he nicknamed 'Survivor', due to it being able to survive countless battles.

The soldier was completely off guard now, and attempted to attack him again, but was slashed from behind thanks to Ian. Once the enemy was down, Alexander grinned and said, "Not bad."

"Thanks." was all that Ian said, nodding his approval.

"You might actually have what it takes to be the one chosen to help Zofia through its unjust rulers and untenable leaders."

Ian must live up to Alexander's expectations if he wanted to help Zofia the way his soldiers wanted him to. The enemy soldiers were now defeated on the ground thanks to the help of Ian's mighty sorcerer's and sorceress, beastwoman, and soldiers who carried bows and arrows as well slashing weapons.

Ian, Henrietta, Alexander, Rica, Mackie, Drake, Tonya and Lola. They all had to rely each other - in other words, teamwork - to ensure Zofia's safety and peace.

After the battle they were thanked by the one who helped make the homes and run the town.

"I am Verinne, princess of Zofia. My parents had been expecting you." Verinne said.

Alexander couldn't help but be attracted to the princess, as he found her to be incredibly beautiful. "So you're royalty, huh? My name's Alexander." he told her.

"Yes, I understand. The rest of you, please introduce yourselves." she replied.

Alexander was saddened to see she didn't take an interest in him the same way he took an interest in her. She didn't even turn back to glance at him when she was leading them to her father.

"Hey, there's a good chance you might get yourself a girl one of these days. Though I must say, she is really gorgeous." Drake whispered to him.

"I wonder what kind of guy she's into?" Alexander asked.

"I dunno." Drake replied.

The entire group were able to introduce themselves to Verinne's parents, the king and queen of Zofia. Henrietta couldn't help but be nervous and excited at the same time as she was encountering people of royalty.

"The balance of Zofia is in anarchy. You made a trickle of hope from your bravery against those stories. With your help we can lead you to another army of poor villagers in barracks."

Ian and the others had agreed with what the king told them, and Rica was clearly excited for another fight.

"I'm actually curious as to what sort of reward we get for protecting Zofia? Inclusion in the royal army? The princess's hand in marriage for any of the guys? Gold?" Drake asked. Mackie gave him a slightly cross-eyed look when the thief brought up the princess.

"You shall be rewarded but not until you win this war and end this tyranny of Zofia. Gold will come bigger than a house. I will even forfeit my royal army to whoever wants it. My daughters hand in marriage...prince or not you may marry her but only to whoever can make her bare a child for me."

"Really? Then it's settled then, you got yourselves a deal!" Ian exclaimed, offering his hand for the king to shake.

The king did just that, shaking his hand, and everyone around them applauded. Verinne smiled as well, and though she was slightly aloof, she couldn't help but blush at the probability of her marrying one of the male fighters. As long as I get to know them, she thought to herself.

Ian and his small army traveled, rested, had fun playing the game tag, and after two days they came across a castle wall with five soldiers guarding it. This location was where they were due to battle.

"Alright, any strategies and what not?" Lola asked.

"Hopefully, we'll be able to make it through these enemies." Tonya added.

Henrietta got close to the first soldier and attacked him with fire. He was down at only one fireball.

Alexander and Drake were able to take on the second and third soldiers, with Alexander giving his enemy a beatdown with his axe. Drake, on the other hand, had narrowly dodged a few attacks from his opponent, until he stabbed him in the stomach with his dagger.

Lola hummed a tune that would encourage her allies, and Rica pounced on the fourth soldier. The beast girl was able to tear him apart with her alternate form, until he was no more.

Ian was between his soldiers while deciding on whether he should wait or go right through the open door. He eventually decided to go inside to fight the castles leader.

The leader had anticipated Ian's arrival, and he approached him, ready to fight.

This time Ian was against a mage like Henrietta. This mage held two fingers up before enchanting his fingers with fire and launching a fireball.

Ian took a small but not fatal hit, allowing Tonya to come in and unleash her crossbow. Mackie also joined her, proceeding to perform a sandstorm attack on the mage, nearly engulfing him in tornado-like sand.

Ian's couldn't be prouder of how well his army was fighting. He ran in jumping in the air and slashing down on the mages' shoulders.

As the mage hit the ground, Henrietta exclaimed, "Victory for our army!" Rica was able to high hive her, Tonya and Lola.

"That was a piece of cake!" Alexander told Mackie and Drake.

News about their victory was sent to the king. He immediately started to write a letter for a runner to give to Ian on where their next battle should be.

In the meantime, Drake had written a letter or two to Verinne, and to his surprise, she wrote back.

 **'To Drake,**

 **You are surprisingly a gentleman, and a genuinely nice person. Even if you're prone to being a bit silly at times personality-wise, I admire your tenacity in combat. Perhaps when you return to the capital, we might share a private conversation or two together.**

 **Sincerely, Verinne'**

After reading the letter, Drake felt his heart skip a beat. Perhaps, she preferred to be with a man who was balanced in terms of combat, and handsome to boot. Of course, Lola had to remind him of the upcoming battle. "We've got another mission to do, Drake. No need to get all lovey dovey." she told him.

Ian was practicing his fighting with Rica. He was using a wooden sword against her transformation jewel. The key was to deal damage no matter what his weapon was or how fierce his enemy is. She was good though and managed to defeat Ian and it proved he needed to work on being a leader.

"That was pretty good." Ian said with a smile as Rica helped him up.

The moment she returned to her human form, she initially wanted to eat, but thanks to Henrietta's advice, decided not to, in order to maintain good metabolism. "No problem, Ian." she said as she smiled back.

Alexander was making sure Survivor's blade wasn't dull, and Henrietta was helping Tonya out with her cooking.

When Henrietta and Tonya were done they made a spaghetti meal with capers and tomatoes on the plate. There was only enough food for three people so they invited their friend Mackie to have a dinner together.

"Whoa! You made this?" Mackie asked.

"I did, with some help from Henrietta." Tonya replied.

As he dug into the spaghetti, he was amazed at how delicious it tasted. "This is so good!" he exclaimed.

"Really? I'm glad you like it." she said with a smile.

Rica sniffed something hot and full of something salty in the air and refrained from going inside there. She would take a walk, smell the flowers, and maybe drink from a stream to ignore her cravings for whatever she was smelling.

Lola was able to find her and ask, "What brings you here?"

"I smelled something that didn't click with me, so I went outdoors." Rica replied.

"Maybe it could be the spaghetti Tonya made." the bard said as she pondered.

"Probably. Trying to act more like you guys suck. It was my incompetence of people though that brought me here and nearly had me hanged."

"Aww, that's terrible." Lola said, a small frown on her face. "But don't worry; me, Ian and the rest of our group care a lot about you." she added, her frown turning into a smile.

This surprised Rica at first, but she ended up smiling back, nodding her approval. "Thank you...I am glad that I have allies I can genuinely trust. Besides, I never meant to be hostile towards you." she said.

"We soldiers who look out for one another are like flies in the world. No matter how much you kill you'll find one you can leave be or assert your hand on it."

Rica nodded. She eventually returned to find Tonya, Henrietta and Mackie, and noticed that the spaghetti didn't look repulsive, after all.

"That looks pretty good." she told them. "It's too bad it's only for three people only."

"It's okay; maybe next time, I might make some food for you." Tonya told her.

That was all for the small army on their eve before their great battle. Ian slept alone like everyone except for Rica who was still awake watching how nocturnal animals act.

She was tremendously curious as she watched the owls, until she heard the sound of footsteps. Rica then turned her head to find that it was Henrietta, who was carrying a lantern.

"Aren't you sleeping?" the mage asked.

"No, I just wanted to see what nocturnal creatures can do at night." the beast girl replied.

Henrietta was finding it hard to read what sort of actions Rica would take since she didn't behave like any other girl. Henrietta could only try to appreciate the animals the way Rica does.

Of course, it would be quite a while for both to finally feel tired. Eventually, Rica and Henrietta returned to their beds and slept for the remainder of the night.

As morning came, Ian got out of his bed, and got dressed in his clothes and armor.

He would be in the front lines with only two other fighters. He was thinking Henrietta and Alexander would make good front line battlers for this battle they were ordered to seige.


	4. Chapter 4

**This is all me and CuddlyChristina managed to write to make enough for a chapter. I won't be able to update this story soon after this chapter because I'll be in a place away from internet for a week. That's about five to eight weeks this story might not be updated.**

XXX

Alexander and Henrietta, were indeed, alongside Ian. The three were confident that the battle would go smoothly. The mage, on the other hand, wondered which enemies they would have to face against. It was likely there would be bowman, mages, calvary of men in horses, and even other beast people.

"Allright, bring it on!" Alexander exclaimed.

It wouldn't be long before they found a three soldiers and two bowman. One of the bowmen had begun firing at Ian, but he was able to dodge the arrows, allowing him to attack him. He delivered a few slashes from his sword, defeating the first bowman.

Rica made it to a bowman before it even noticed her. She attacked the bowman in her beast form pouncing on him and knocking him out with one swipe.

With both bowmen dead, a cavalry came in attempted to take down the trio. Tonya, armed with her crossbow, was able to shoot a few of them down after Lola successfully distracted them with her singing.

The mages were handled by another mage. Henrietta used thunder to take down the mages, who only seemed to know how to cast fire at their enemies.

Mackie was able to cast an ice spell, making a fire spell from one of the mages impossible. Drake followed up by giving the enemy mage several slashes, taking him out in the process.

He also took out the remaining cavalry, as well. All that was left for the heroic army against strong fighters was the leader of the fortress. Or at least the leader of the fortress and a very beautiful yet sadistic looking assistant for him.

The leader's name was Rudolf, and he was a gifted marksman. His assistant, on the other hand, was named Trish, and she was a warrior like Alexander. Ian would be fighting Rudolf up close. He charged at him and swung with both hands on his sword, but missed him because of his maneuverability.

Rudolf was able to give him a slash or two, one on Ian's left shoulder and another on his left arm. Trish also took out her halberd and went right after Rica.

Rica was hit but the attack only stunned her. It was a lucky break for her and she used that break to transform into a bit and scratch Trish.

Trish was wounded, and was struggling to sustain it, before Rudolf finally exclaimed, "We submit! You don't need to kill us, we yield!"

"Are you serious?" Rica asked.

"Yeah...you guys are quite good. Both Rudolf and I didn't expect you to have that much fight in you." Trish replied.

Rica looked at Ian who was very confused because he wasn't a match for Rudolf. He tried being clever but he wasn't doing anything good against his enemies.

J"We were just kidding; how does a one on one duel between me and you sound?" Rudolf asked.

"Heh...you're on!" Ian replied.

And with that, the two came to blows with each other, each man delivering a good few slashes or two. Though Rudolf blocked an attack from Ian, he didn't see his enemy's attack coming, as Ian took him down with his sword.

Rudolf then attempted to disarm Ian, but felt his enemy stab him in the chest area. He clutched at his wound, gritting his teeth as he dropped his own weapon.

Trish was surprised at how her leader was defeated by a boy not too long ago was no better than a rabbit against a fox. She could die fighting now or surrender being humiliated but live.

"It's natural for you to be afraid seeing your leader being killed," Rica said looking at Rudolf's corpse instead of her. "I dislike people who don't see death as something to be scared about and I admire kings who are greedy simply because their greed helps make their kingdom strong.

"I can't help but yield...I never knew it would lead to this." Trish said. She was clearly dejected as she dropped her halberd. "But he sure was clever into luring you into thinking he and I surrendered." she added.

"Indeed." Henrietta said with a nod.

The army returned with Trish being restrained by Henrietta and Rica. They promised her they would give her a fair trial for siding with their enemy army. Her lawyer would be someone in their army.

Trish's lawyer was Hugh, a male mage that narrowly avoided death in battle. Deep down inside, Trish believed she would rather betray the army she was siding with and join Ian and the others.

The judge put her on the stand to explain herself of her actions and what she would do to redeem herself in the eyes of their kingdom.

"Rudolf kidnapped me a few years ago, and he ended up molding me into a henchman of his. I began developing Stockholm Syndrome towards him, and as much as I cared about him, I'm actually glad that he's dead."

The jury murmured things about her. Some were mumbling she was brave while others thought of her as a traitor. All Trish knew was she had a purpose and she knew everyone has a gift.

Henrietta believed in Trish's story, feeling pity for the young woman. Before long, the other fighters ended up sympathizing with her.

The whole court was silent when Henrietta walked up to the judge making an offer to him. The judge would listen only because it was a member of the hero's army.

"Trish could make herself an invaluable ally to us; after all, it's the only way she can redeem herself." Henrietta said.

The judge began to ponder this over, before finally agreeing to the proposition. Trish would then be let go, and was recruited by Ian and the others.

Although they were on their guard of what she would do in the face of battle, Ian shook her hand welcoming her to their party.

"I only seek redemption, after all." Trish told them.

"Very well, as long as you do not betray us." Ian replied.

Henrietta and Rica smiled, nodding their heads in agreement.

Tonight was a celebration of seizing a fortress and adding a new teammate to their side. The person having the most fun was Rica digging in enjoying their victory.

Tonya even made a delicious chocolate cake for anyone to enjoy, though she warned them that only two slices were good, so as to not get a stomachache. Elsewhere, Alexander approached Trish and began flirting with her.

His behavior caught her eye, and she grinned before the two started talking together. It was clear that it was probable love at first sight, and as for Drake and Verinne, things seemed to be picking up quite well.

Ian's on the other hand was standing around with a chalice of wine in his hand.

"I can't believe as to how Rudolf tricked us into thinking he'd surrender. Clever guy he was." Ian told Henrietta.

"Very clever...I'm sure there might be more enemies that might use this tactic on us in the future." Lola said, sipping her wine.

Trish could at least help them see through the facade of crafty men so they wouldn't fall for their tricks.

"I think this chick could be pretty helpful, after all." Alexander said.

"I think so, too." Mackie added.

"I agree." Rica said.

After having a hard time trying to get along the whole army fell asleep. Trish was up late looking at books to help her eyes get tired.


	5. Chapter 5

**After a vacation I am back to finish this story with my co-author CuddlyChristina. I hope this new chapter is enjoyable.**

XXX

"What are you reading?" Lola asked.

"I'm reading on the history of the kingdom of Zofia." Trish replied.

"Really? Looks like you're interested in history as much as Henrietta is." the bard said with a smile.

Trish wondered about that. She certainly was interested in it and wanted to know so much about it. Those who don't study history will only lead to repeating it.

"By the way, Alexander told me you should get some sleep tonight." Lola added.

"Oh, I see. Thanks for mentioning that, I almost forgot." Trish said, nodding.

And with that, the female warrior retired for the night, and Lola returned to her quarters to sleep, too.

The next morning Trish was welcomed with an aroma of eggs and brewed coffee.

"Ooh, breakfast!" she exclaimed.

"Lola and I were able to make a special 'welcome to the team' breakfast for you." Tonya said.

"Really? You shouldn't have." Trish said with a broad smile before digging in.

Ian walked in wearing an apron with a frying pan of bacon. Bacon was more Ian's favourite breakfast meat so he wanted to make it for his team.

"Enjoying your breakfast?" he asked.

"Oh, yes, I am. Thanks for asking!" Trish replied.

"Everyone else is having bacon, too." Rica added. "It tastes so good!" she exclaimed.

Rica couldn't eat enough bacon because of how she liked the fat in the bacon and the redness of the meat.

Thankfully, she learned how to handle her metabolism. After he finished his breakfast, Drake asked, "So, any battles for today?"

"The King said there is an army that is larger than Rudolf's army and has the powerful members of the dark kings army."

"I see...that sounds dangerous, but hopefully we can get through the enemy." Henrietta said.

"Say, have you and Verrine went on a date or two?" Mackie asked.

Drake chuckled, before he said, "I don't know...especially since the whole group's been busy. Maybe I could ask her out when we're done with this particular mission."

Mackie felt he and Drake shared something in common now. Both boys wanted to ask girls out on a date.

Mackie seemed very attached to Henrietta, whereas Drake was still head-over-heels in love with Verinne.

"As long as we're not busy fighting, we could makes plans for what we want to do in our spare time." Ian said.

Rica overheard the boys chatting. Her heard was in agony when she thought about Ian and how he saved her, fed her, and showed her a side of her she thought never existed. She could be in love with him.

"You alright?" Tonya asked.

"I'm fine, though my head is hurting a bit. I just can't help but think of Ian; he's been so nice to me that it's almost driving me crazy." Rica replied.

"Maybe you could relax at the hot springs at the inn." Lola said.

"Sure, I could do that." the beast girl responded, before going to her destination.

She was usually someone who wasn't impressed by heat but this hot spring was a joy to her skin because of the temperature and the minerals in it helping cleanse her skin.

1After she spent her time in the hot spring, Rica felt much better, and was able to return to the others. When she came back, she noticed that Drake and Verinne were talking to each other. It seemed she was visiting them.

"How are things going for you and your allies?" the princess asked.

"Pretty good, I guess. I was wondering if we can, you know, go out on our first date. I really do feel like we've been writing letters for so long that we've already established a friendship's that bound to evolve sooner or later." the thief replied.

"Perhaps...but only when you come back from your next battle." Verinne said.

Drake smiled and hugged her, before she went to talk to the others.

Rica didn't get to have a talk with her because she was going to her room to just sleep the night away. She needed her muscles the way she wanted them for the battle her allies as well she would have.

"I can tell she's pretty tired." Henrietta said.

"I think so, too." Lola added.

"We should all be getting our beauty sleep for the night." Tonya said. Everyone else nodded in agreement.

It was time to sleep their backs down. Some of them had an itch though to get closer to other girls.

"What's going on?" Alexander asked.

"I dunno...I feel as if I'm becoming drawn to Rica. She really seems to appreciate how nice I was to her all this time." Ian replied.

In another room, Drake asked, "You still got Henrietta on your mind?"

"Yeah...she's pretty, but she's smart, too." Mackie replied.

It was a lot of happiness for a short time before they went outside and started their march to the enemies fortress.

The leader of the enemy army was Olympia, a well-known marksman, as she was equipped with a rifle. The entire group of heroes had to make sure they weren't in her sight.

In order to get to her fortress they had to not be so obvious on their way to her fortress. It was Trish who approached the fortress alone, or at least alone in the snipers eyes.

When she briefly took a glance at Olympia aiming at her, she had to make sure to take cover, otherwise she'd be shot down. Of course, before she could do that, she was shot in the right leg.

"Ah, shit!" Trish exclaimed. Thankfully, the wound wasn't fatal.

Henrietta, on the other hand, wondered as to when the group would seize the opportunity to get in the fortress, since Trish was brave enough to go in alone.

Rica was brave enough to run right towards the fortress with her human legs. The sniper fired at her hit her instincts helped her dodge the bullet which ricocheted off a tree barely missing a member of the army.

Eventually, Rica came face to face with Olympia after making her way to the top, even killing a few guards along the way without being noticed.

"How'd you get here?" the sniper asked.

"Needed to lend a friend a hand since you shot her." the beast girl replied.

Olympia took out what appeared to be a dagger, and said, "At least she made herself a fine scapegoat. By the way, you're next."

She thrust her blade forward before swinging it left and right at Rica. She was cut in her body hurting her for not wearing body armor.

Rica eventually turned into her beast form, and before she knew it, Olympia was mauled. Though the beast girl was slightly injured, it didn't stop her but taking her down.

Ian had managed to make it to the fortress, and was amazed as to how Rica was able to defeat Olympia. "You alright?" he asked.

It wasn't long for her to revert back into her human form, and said, "Yeah. Trish and I are kinda injured, so we could sure use some help."

Trish also showed up, clutching at her leg, and with Henrietta helping her up.

Ian helped Rica by holding her and letting her use his shoulder to help her stand.

"Thanks." Rica said with a smile.

"No problem." Ian replied.

Henrietta also brought with her an associate of Olympia's, a man named Punpom. "I was able to give him a sound beating. Now that Olympia's dead, he's got no choice but to cooperate with us."

"You don't know the half of it: she was once an acquaintance of my dad's." he replied.

Ian felt Henrietta had grown much stronger and wiser since the day they first met.

"I suggest we'd take Punpom into our ranks and see if he's willing to fight for a cause." Ian said.

"I agree, and if he tries something that might not appease us, he could be kicked out." Henrietta added.

As they exited the fortress, Punpom was able to explain his story to Ian and the others.

His father would beat him often because of how he looked like his sister and she died during an invasion of soldiers from the Kings army. He might be mistaken because the king was suppose to be the good guy.

"It seems to me this guy's got a complicated backstory." Mackie said.

"Yet we have Verinne's father's support, which is a good thing." Drake added, before he asked, "Do you really think the king of Zoria is a bad guy?"

No one could say for sure so they stayed quiet on the matter. It may be someone working for the king was bad.

Eventually, Drake went out on his first date with Verinne. They would talk and hang out while walking through the streets, until they decided to eat at a cafe of sorts. He even brought her a necklace of decent quality, and she was happy to accept his gift.

Meanwhile, Lola and Tonya were at the hot springs. However, they were unaware of the fact that Punpom was peeping on them.

He didn't get to look at their naked bodies because Ian followed him and dragged him away from the hot spring.

"I can use your peeping as leverage for making you go to the front lines. Better to die in battle than the girls scratching your eyes out."

"Hey! That's not fair!" Punpom exclaimed.

"Now that's what I call 'just desserts'." Lola said with a grin.

Back at the inn, when Drake returned from his date, Alexander asked, "So, how'd it go with Verinne?"

"It went pretty well; I gave her a gift and she loved it." the thief replied.

Alexander was happy to hear his friend had someone special in his life and would be much happier if his friend became the next king of Zofia.

Elsewhere, Mackie had bought a bouquet of white lilies for Henrietta. As he caught up with her, he said, "Lola told me you like lilies, so I got a bouquet of them for you."

Henrietta was impressed with how gorgeous the flowers were, and said, "Thank you, Mackie. Though I wonder, why did you give me such a gift?"

"Because I'm starting to think that our relationship is taking a big step towards something special." the male mage replied.

She blushed hearing that line he said. She managed to smile even though her face was hot.

"Are you okay?" Mackie asked.

"I'm...I'm fine. It's just I've never been in love before, and now I feel so honored." Henrietta replied.


	6. Chapter 6

**This chapter was a lot of fun to write and I'm happy it has finally been posted. Thank you viewers for helping me and my coauthor CuddlyChristina write this chapter.**

XXX

Rica felt the same way as Henrietta which was why she was keeping her distance from men.

As she was in her room, the beast girl got a visit from Tonya, who, along with Lola, came back from the hot springs. "Is there something wrong?" the knight asked her.

"No, not really. Though Ian's been on my mind lately." Rica replied.

"I can clearly tell you're a little nervous, though." Tonya said.

"Yeah, a wee bit. However, I just wanna wait till we're finished with our next mission in order to tell him how much I feel about him." the beast girl replied.

"Hopefully, it'll work out for both of you." the knight told her with a small smile.

The day of their next battle began and like Ian promised Punpom was on the front lines for peeking on those girls in their hot spring. He was next to Lola who making him more nervous as the image of her out of her armor came to his mind.

Lola looked over at him and asked, "Shouldn't you apologize for trying to peek on me and Tonya?"

"Ugh...I'm really sorry for doing something like that. I just can't control myself when it comes to girls." Punpom replied.

"So, where are we going, who are we fighting, and who is their leader?" Henrietta asked.

" We are going through an underground tunnel that will bring us to the dungeon of this fortress," Ian said. " We are fighting a marauder leader who is in charge of archers and swordsman."

The entire group eventually traveled through the tunnel, until they finally reached the entrance to the dungeon. Punpom was confident, as were the others.

An enemy soldier was pacing through the dungeon but he didn't look like he saw them so they had the advantage.

Alexander was the first to strike, attacking the soldier with his axe and killing him in one fell swoop. "That was quick." Drake said.

"Actually, that was too easy!" the warrior exclaimed.

It wouldn't be the same between other enemies in this castle.

"It only gets tougher from here." Ian replied.

Alexander jolted in surprise, before he facepalmed himself. "Ah, shit, I should've known!"

The group continued to press on, until they reached the next slew of enemies. This slew charged in a line of three in front with three behind. All it took to know them down was a fireball shot from Henrietta's fingers.

It was able to incinerate five of them, and the last of them was greeted with arrows from Tonya's crossbow. Ian watched over the charred bodies of the five men and arrows in the last ones chest. He breathed air knowing they didn't deserve to die.

"What's wrong?" Henrietta asked.

"If only we persuaded them..." Ian replied.

"I know..." she said, nodding; she couldn't help but sympathize with him.

They moved over the dead bodies of soldiers reaching a door with two guards.

One of the guards took out a sword, and slashed at Henrietta's right arm. As she sustained a light but non-fatal wound, Punpom was able to attack the guard.

Once the first guard was down, the other one came face to face with Drake. The second guard was also armed with daggers, making the fight all the more interesting.

Though the second guard stunned Drake, the thief was able to break out his stupor to unleash a flurry of attacks on him. The second guard was finally slashed in the throat and collapsed to the ground as he died.

Punpom was quiet seeing all the blood and dead bodies from the carnage that took place only a few feet away from a door.

"Check and see what's in there." Lola told him.

Punpom nodded, and cautiously opened the door.

He saw a torch hanged on the wall. His spine shivered seeing fire because for a second it looked like a soldier carrying a torch.

Taking hold of the torch, Punpom convinced the others to follow him as they explored the dark depths of the dungeon.

Their were actually sarcophagus's in the corridors of the dungeon. There could be two reasons they were keeping tombs in this dungeon: to keep the dead in the last beds they will lie in or to use a necromancer to turn them into zombies, beings of biliousness that think their the people and everyone else is the only food they will eat.

"So what do we do with these sarcophagus's? Do we leave them and keep moving? Or take a peek into them?" Mackie asked.

"I was anointed a mage since I was a little girl. It would be better to leave the dead alone," Henrietta said.

Everyone agreed, thus they continued on further until they reached the boss. He was smirking seeing weak soldiers try to tell him down.

This boss in particular was named Harris, a swordsman who wielded two swords. As he watched his soldiers attempt to take down Ian and the others, only for them to be given a sound beating, he was slightly disappointed, but was confident in defeating them.

Ian was the leader so he challenged Harris to a duel. Ian was hopeful defeating him would scare the other Leaders away from the king of Zofia.

Taking out both swords, Harris lunged at him. He and Ian began clashing swords at each other, blocking their attacks. It wasn't long before the enemy leader slashed at him, giving him a light wound on his shoulder.

Rica yelled, "Don't give up just yet!"

This prompted Ian to notice her plea, and he was able to wail away on Harris with his sword. The enemy leader had attempted to block the attack with one of his swords, but was genuinely caught off guard.

Harris was then stabbed in the chest by Ian, and the enemy hit the ground, completely dead.

Ian took a moment to overcome his shock killing a man to look at his allies. They were applauding his victory.

"Wow...just wow!" Rica exclaimed, before she hugged him.

"I wonder if there are any moles that wanna join us." Trish added.

Ian was blushing from the furry but warm and soft hands from Rica.

Rica smiled as she said, "You did a pretty good job out there."

"I...I did. Thank you." he replied.

"I think there aren't any moles in the group that are willing to fight alongside us." Tonya said.

"That's okay. We are a pretty good team to make it this far alone. All we need is to take the living enemies to their cells and see if we can reason with any of them."

Ian felt empowered by his words.

"Good!" Alexander said with a smile, nodding his approval. Everyone else agreed.

Ian and most of his army went to another trial to determine the fate of the soldiers who made it out alive and became captives of the king.

While most of the enemy soldiers agreed to do odd jobs, such as cleaning the floors of the castle, in order to avoid exile or execution, others were punished.

One was a rail looking thin man who looked old enough to be someone's grandfather. He was surprisingly a dangerous man with a javelin so he was enforced to work with Ian and his army.

"What is your name?" Henrietta asked.

"Daniel." the man replied.

"Welcome Daniel. We care neither of your previous alignments or your age. We are people who would like you to work with us only if you prove to not be trying to wipe us out." Ian said.

"Thank you." Daniel replied, nodding his approval.

The entire team would have a celebratory dinner together, with Tonya being able to make some tasty steak for everyone. The men were going to enjoy having lots of sauce for their tasty meat.

As Alexander dug right in, he asked Rica, "Aren't you gonna eat of what Tonya has made for us all?"

"Well, I've been making sure to watch my metabolism. After all, Henrietta advised me not to eat too much." she replied.

"Oh, that's cool." Mackie replied.

Alexander wouldn't be following her life choice as he just dug in. He was enjoying the food more, maybe because another member was with them.

"Hey, this is some great food! Tonya can certainly cook like a pro!" Trish exclaimed.

"I know, right? It seems she's got a favorite hobby after all besides fighting with her crossbow." Alexander replied.

"I knew you guys would like it." Tonya said with a smile.

"Exquisite," Daniel said looking at his food instead of his guests. "I just wish I had some coffee with it, but I'm sure new members take time to have that."

"We also don't have that," Ian said to him. "I'll walk with you to a shop that sells coffee. It's on me."


	7. Chapter 7

**It's thanks to CuddlyChristina I was able to create this chapter. Another chapter will be posted after this one because I have to show what we worked on. Thank you.**

XXX

Daniel smiled, and with that, he and Ian went to a shop to order some coffee for the newcomer. He was able to order a French roast style coffee, and paid the clerk with some gold.

When they came back, Daniel wondered if there was any more food left.

Like how Ian went shopping for Daniel, Henrietta went shopping for her leader. She returned with a bag of groceries.

When she came back, Daniel was in the midst of eating when he asked, "So you've went out like I did?"

"Yes." Henrietta replied.

"So these are all the groceries you've picked up for us?" Ian asked.

"Yes, that's right." she said.

"Great; that'll give us a good amount of food to digest for the next few days or so." he replied.

Mackie and Punpom liked the news of finding food to eat. Someone also looking at them was Rica making sure they didn't steal any food which was now provisions for their army.

"I really want to get my hands on that!" Rica exclaimed.

"Haven't you eaten enough?" Lola asked.

The beast girl let out a small sigh of disappointment; however, she asked, "Mind if I have one last plate for the road?"

"Alright, then." Trish replied, shrugging her shoulder.

Despite this last plate, Rica had to remember her vow not to eat too much.

It was harder to keep her promise with so many other soldiers walking around her. Their odors reminded her of food.

She ended up giving in, and proceeded to consume some more food. This greatly surprised Henrietta, and she walked over to her and asked, "Rica? What's going on?"

"The scent of these men makes me even more hungrier than ever." the beast girl replied. "I can't help it, at all."

The mage frowned before replying, "I'm kind of disappointed that you broke your promise."

"It seems to me that one of our friends loves eating." Punpom told Mackie. "Thankfully, she's still fit as a fiddle." the male mage added.

Rica was only daydreaming about breaking her promise. If she did break her promise she would never forgive herself. The part about the male odors were true. So true she wanted to play a game outside with anyone to breath fresh air.

"Hey! You guys wanna go outside and play?" she asked as she went over to Trish, Lola and Tonya.

"Count me in." the female warrior said with a smile. "I want in on this, too." the bard added.

"I'm just bringing in dessert." the female knight replied. The dessert in question was strawberry shortcake. "You guys can go ahead, though. I'll makes sure to store a few pieces for each of you to have when you come back."

"Thanks!" Rica said with a grin.

Rica had to pick a game where she was at a disadvantage to distract from eating. Hide 'n' Seek would he too easy for her and anything involving climbing she could win.

"Let's do some kind of quiz, just to test our history! Okay first question: what are the names of the sibling duo in Ylisse?" Lola said.

"Hmmm...I think one of their names was Lissa, I think...but..." Rica replied, but trailed off.

Rica could twirl a knot of grass in her hand trying to think of the right answer.

"I know who they are! Chrom and Lissa!" Trish exclaimed.

"That's right!" Lola said, highfiving the female warrior.

"Question two: To whom was the princess Eirika wed to?" Rica asked.

Trish began to consider her answer.

"Ephraim?" Lola said believing she could be wrong but she didn't see any other answer.

"Um..." Trish said as she scratched the back of her head. "Is it...Seth?" she finally asked.

"Correct!" Rica exclaimed.

"Alright, question number three..." Trish began.

For the next few minutes, they were able to answer seven more questions, with Lola pretty much in the lead. For the final question, Trish asked, "Who is the mysterious maiden with the blue hair that accompanied Corrin?"

"I think her name was Azura."

This happened to be Rica's answer, and Trish replied, "You've got it!"

The girls highfived each other, congratulating each other on a successful quiz, before deciding to return to the others. As Tonya promised, they each had their individual pieces of the dessert. One was a whip cream filled cake with chocolate shavings and the other was a bowl of pudding with chocolate ice cream.

The trio of girls had their share; one slice for each of them, and individual bowls of pudding. They genuinely enjoyed Tonya's food, though they were a bit unaware of the strawberry shortcake. Fortunately, she reminded them that they could have the remaining pieces of the shortcake for tomorrow's lunch.

Now it was time for them to train for the next battle of the war.

As Tonya engaged in target practice, Mackie and Henrietta were in the midst of remembering new spells. Alexander and Ian were also sparring each other in a friendly match, as did Punpom and Trish.

Drake also received another letter from Verinne, which read:

 **I am impressed by your progress so far; but remember, don't push yourself too hard. I hope you write back soon, okay?**

 **Love, Verinne**

There was no way he wasn't writing a letter back to her from how she showed love to him in the form of her letter.

 **Dear Verinne,**

 **I feel so honored to have a received another letter from you. In fact, every day I'm at battle with my friends and allies, I never stopped thinking about you. Hopefully, when we catch up with each other again, we could go out on another date.**

 **Sincerely, Drake**

It would take a few days for the letter to reach Drake. He didn't wait to send it out though, the sooner she received it the happier he would be.

When Verinne finally got his letter, she was genuinely happy. Who knew that a clever, bright thief and a beautiful princess could actually click together?

He kept the letter a secret from his friends. He wanted to share bigger news, maybe one where the princess and him had a special moment and he gave her a ring.

Verinne had to make sure not to tell her ladies-in-waiting about her relationship with Drake; in fact, she wanted to wait until the war was over and she wanted to take things further, perhaps having a proposal.

Girls seemed to have an effect on most of the boys in the army. The same could be said with Henrietta and her relationship with a boy.

She and Mackie had been getting along quite well, and were surprised that a pair of mages could actually be friendly with each other, instead of bluffing as to who was the better one.

He even invited her out to look at the stars together, and she admired as to how dark and beautiful the night sky was. Though he was a bit scared to admit he, Mackie thought she was more beautiful than the stars.

In the end all the members woke up feeling like a jewel was in their hearts of the precious romance they felt. Of course, they had to remind themselves of their next upcoming battle. Ian knew, for sure. As he rallied everyone up, they finally went out to battle.

This time the battle would be on a swamp. Standing too long in the purple puddle could take a toll on their health.


	8. Chapter 8

**It was troublesome for me to post this chapter before it became Saturday morning. Thank you though those who read the chapter I posted before this one.**

XXX

"You see any enemies or something?" Alexander asked. In response, Henrietta took out her binoculars in order to take a look.

She did see an enemy on a circle surrounded by a legion of men. The enemy's name was Travis, and he was a notorious raider, infamous for pillaging villages for all their worth. He claimed that they were planning on robbing the royal family of the Zofia kingdom, including kidnapping Verinne.

Drake wanted to be in the front lines fighting someone who thinks he had the right to try kidnapping Princess Verinne.

"I want to fight this man! If he wants to kidnap Verinne, then he's gonna have to go through me first!" Drake exclaimed.

"I've a feeling it may be dangerous, but if it's what you want, so be it." Ian replied.

Drake had the first battle against an archer. Drake used his thief abilities to move fast at his attack. He was able to dodge the archer's incoming attacks, his movements quick and precise. Drake then attacked him by disarming him of his bow and arrow, and slashed at him with his dagger.

After he defeated his enemy, Henrietta moved closer to the army. It would be like they were catching fish in puddle if he fought them alone.

She used a cyclone spell on a few of the enemies, blowing them away. Of course, Henrietta had to make sure to avoid the purple puddles. When she got close to the enemies she opened her spellbook and used her book to shoot a fireball at a mage on the enemies side.

The mage was struck, and upon his defeat, he was nearly incinerated. "So far, so good." Henrietta said to herself.

Rica fought an archer next. A mage used a spell that teleported him closer to Ian's army and he attacked her first. She dodged the arrow swiftly and with the same reflexes ran at him and punched him in his chin.

She also delivered a flurry of punches and kicks to him, before he hit the ground. Rica then went after the mage responsible for the teleportation, and transformed into her beast form, mauling her immediately.

Henrietta used a fireball on a soldier who noticed Rica and tried burning him before he could really hurt her. Alexander came out to attack the soldier, slashing at him with his axe. Once he was dead, the warrior noticed Trish showing up, and the two offered to team up together.

Alexander and her slated two men. It was hero time for Ian as he ran into the area their leader was.

Ian was able to track down Travis, who taunted him by saying, "I bet you're not man enough to stop me! Once you and your friends are dead, my gang and I will pillage the castle and kidnap the princess!"

"You wouldn't dare!" Ian yelled with a an angry glare while drawing his sword.

"I dare. Also a battle starts before a weapon can even be drawn. Attack!"

From Ian's backside an arrow shot right into his shoulder blade. This was the same arm that had his hand for his sword.

The archer who attacked Ian in question was suddenly attacked by Punpom, who did him in with with his crossbow. Tonya also showed up, offering to doubleteam him against Travis.

"Are you alright?" the female knight asked.

"Ugh, I'm fine, I guess...this damn arrow, though...is there a good chance we can get it out?" Ian replied.

"Maybe, yet we mustn't quit at this moment!" Henrietta said.

Ian felt their encouragement helping him raise his sword out of his sheath. He gripped it tightly with both his hands ready to strike him. Travis had attempted to attack him, but Ian's sword sliced at him several times, and even gave him a big wound on his torso.

Unlike a lot of Ian's other opponents there was something helping his opponent stand after the wounds were inflicted.

The wounds had begun to disappear, forming new skin. Everyone else's jaws dropped when they discovered this, and Mackie asked, "What are we gonna do if this guy regenerates skin on a regular basis?!"

"I don't know...maybe knock him out or something?!" Alexander replied.

"That's got to be harder than-" Mackie was interrupted by Rica slamming her fist down on the enemies head. He collapsed on the ground. "That was easy."

Travis hit the ground as his head exploded, with his brain and blood spilling out.

"Heh, not bad!" Trish exclaimed. "Not a good time to lose someone's head." she added.

The group laughed for a moment, before choosing to leave the battlefield. Again, they had to be careful of the puddles.

When they left the swamp area they returned to the town and the inn they were staying in. Ian reminded the king that there were a gang that was planning to kidnap Verinne; luckily, Ian and his friends stopped them and their leader Travis.

"Good job, brave ones!" the king exclaimed as he clapped his hands in approval.

They all bowed to the king happy they managed to please the king stopping the man who would assassinate the king if they managed to get to the castle.

Later that night, the group had already made their plans on what to do tonight. Mackie and Henrietta decided to go out to a cafe to eat together.

He felt like it was such a triumphant day he would even have lobster for dinner. First he was ordering coffee at the cafe. Henrietta also ordered herself coffee, as well. She even agreed that they'd both have lobster for dinner.

"To be honest, I've never eaten seafood before. I should give it a try." she said.

"If we are both ordering the same thing we can save money getting s lobster with a slab of meat with it and vegetables," Mackie suggested.

"Sounds good to me." Henrietta said.

With that, they ordered exactly what Mackie told her. When the food arrived, they began eating together. The female mage was amazed as to how the lobster tasted very good.

Mackie dipped his lobster meat in a buttery hot sauce with flakes of green substances that oozed with a buttery taste.

As Henrietta dug in, she was hugely impressed by its taste, even when it was dipped in sauce. "This is so good!" she exclaimed.

Mackie was happy to have something a beautiful girl like her could enjoy. As the two enjoyed their dinner together, elsewhere was Rica looking for some cologne for Ian. She had to make sure it was in his favorite scent; and was able to find one containing the scent in question.

She looked through a shop so long the manager, a woman in her sixties with a hairclip in her lavender scented hair, approached her.

"Are you looking for cologne for a special man?" She said. She sounded like she didn't care about Rica's animal ears.

"Uh, yeah. He has a thing for woodsy scents, like most men do, I think." Rica replied.

"Woodsy? Hmmm..." the manager began to look for certain colognes that had the scent the beast girl was looking for.

"Here it is. I knew it was around here somewhere." She said.

What she handed Rica looked like a green vial with a few black spots inside the vial.

When she took of whiff of it, she smiled. "Smells like Ian." she said, before buying the cologne and returning to the inn to give to Ian as a gift.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem

 **This chapter was written by CuddlyChristina and I. It is the chapter before a big battle between the strongest opponent he has faced so far.**

XXX

Ian found Rica with the gift presented to him in gift format. He was more than very happy to receive a present like it.

"Here's some cologne I got for you; I hope you like it." Rica said.

Ian nodded, and upon taking the cologne, tried it out. He was amazed with the scent in particular, and said, "Thank you."

She smiled, and hugged him, breathing in the scent of the cologne.

The woman in the store picked the right cologne for her. She was smelling something like a lion warm and fuzzy on its body.

"You okay?" Ian asked.

Rica suddenly backed away and replied as she blushed faintly, "I'm fine...it's just that it felt good when I hugged and smelled you."

"Really...? I think so, too." he said.

It was an awkward moment of the two laughing from the smell of the cologne. Ian held her hand saying they should walk out together.

"Sure!" Rica replied, smiling.

Ian smiled back, and with that, the two went out for a walk.

Elsewhere, Alexander invited Trish to the tavern to drink and talk together. "I've been waiting for a chance to hang out with a gal like you." he said.

"I thought you had the hots for Verinne." she told him.

"Not anymore; besides, she's with Drake." he replied.

She didn't really take that as a compliment but it meant enough for her to give him a chance. It was just one measly drink they were sharing together.

"You know, Alex," Trish said as she took a slug of the beer that they ordered. "You're a real badass on the field; and come to think of it, I like men that prove to be very tough in and out of battle." she added.

"You serious?" Alexander asked, a look of surprise on his face.

"Yes, definitely." she replied with a grin, before passing the drink over to him.

He was trying to keep in mind she just gave him a compliment and he didn't get one of those very often. After finally receiving the compliment he swallowed the drink down.

"I can't help but enjoy getting compliments from gals like you." Alexander said with a wink.

Trish giggled, and smiled as she replied, "Thanks."

He chugged down the drink feeling the most delicious nectar in the middle of the glass.

"Man, that was so good!" Alexander exclaimed.

"I liked how it tasted, too." Trish said.

The rest of the night continued normally, up until morning.

This time Ian had to be warned before he and his army went outside to fight enemies at their base. He was warned by none other than the king and his daughter walking through the village gate.

"Yes, your majesty?" Ian asked.

"I've come here to give you details of your next mission." the king replied.

"What is it, then?" the fighter said.

"You will be facing a man who can transform into a creature from another world. He has many motherless children created from the depeths of power he controls. I suggest you use a different weapon, one called Falcion."

The man in question was Kreyl.

"Falchion? Is there any myth behind it?" Ian asked.

The king nodded his head. "They saw only a brave soldier can wield it. Can you find us a brave warrior Ian?"

"Hopefully." Ian replied with a nod. "But where can we find it?" he also asked.

"In a giant mountain that looks like a scary creature. If it's hard to find that place...I have no hope for Zofia."

The mountain was known as Leviathan Hill.

"We'll find it, don't worry." Ian replied.

And with that, he rounded up all his allies, prepared their weapons, and began their trek to Leviathan Hill.

So far the journey was easy despite all the rough climbing they had to go through.

It took quite a good amount of time for them to reach Leviathan Hill. "Wow, it's huge!" Henrietta exclaimed. She had used her binoculars to get a view of the mountain a few times, and couldn't be any more impressed.

Ian was also impressed from hearing what it looked like wasn't a lie.

"If that Falchion in question is in some kind of dungeon within that mountain, I want in on this!" Alexander exclaimed. His friends agreed with him.

Walking inside the mountain was like walking into the fray of a battlefield.

"We've got to be extra cautious in there." Henrietta told the others.

"I'll say. This place could be pretty dangerous, after all." Mackie added.

The elevated areas of the mountain turned out to have dangerous things lurking in them.

"Keep an eye out for anything threatening; chances are, we might come into contact with them." Ian told the others.

"I sure as hell hope we get to that Falchion soon." Trish added.

A lot of them nodded also hoping that they found the Falchion.

As they went deeper, they would fend off various creatures, until after a rather long journey within Leviathan Hill, they located the Falchion.

However, it was guarded by a rather menacing monster.

This monster is a bulbous creature with eight tentacle claws around its body, a flytrap looking head with orange skin, and a scorpion tail in its rear.

"That's one ugly beast." Punpom said.

"I think we're gonna need a strategy to take this thing down." Tonya added.

"First anyone with a bow and arrow please shoot at the ears of this beast." Ian ordered.

"Got it." Tonya replied, then aimed her crossbow at the enemy's ears. It took several arrows to hit the area, prompting the monster to notice and growl.

"Okay. Now both of my mages need to use fire magic on her creatures back."

Henrietta nodded, and she and Mackie proceeded to successfully cast fire bolt spells, hitting the beast's back. It groaned as it was ready to attack Ian and the others.

"Everyone who wields a weapon or fights as a brawler charge with me and attack where your mages and bowmen striked."

The fighters - Alexander, Punpom, Daniel, Rica, Drake, Trish and Ian - finally let loose, attacking the areas that the creature was hit. The monsters attempted to strike at them, even attacking Tonya and giving her a small wound.

With every damage they overcame they came back stronger and more fierce than before.

Despite the monster being strong, it was no match for the combined forces of Ian and his team. He finally sliced at its claws, until it was finally defenseless.

Henrietta cast another fire spell at it, causing it to burn and writhe in pain until it hit the ground, completely dead.

Ian felt sorry for the charred body of the monster despite how it tried to swallow him and his army.

Ian then went towards the Falchion, and took it in his hands. He was impressed with its appearance, and tried it out. He looked over at the others and said, "We've got it!"

Everyone else cheered, before they all exited Leviathan Hill.

The walk back to the town felt more like an exalted March of a victory they hadn't won yet.

"So you've gotten the Falchion at last...amazing!" Verinne exclaimed as she approached Ian and the others.

"Thank you." Ian replied, shaking her hand.

The king also showed up and shook his hand, saying, "You have done an amazing job finding this weapon, and I believe you have what it takes to stop Kreyl."

"Wherever Kreyl lurks he has met his match against this weapon." Ian said displaying confidence.

"We are tired from that last quest. Can we take a night off?" Punpom complained.

"Of course." Verinne replied.

"We're gonna need all the rest we can get, anyway." Daniel added.

"I agree on that." Alexander replied.

Ian told them they would have to move as quickly as they could preparing for bed and wake up where breakfast would be light where they would practice their skills afterwards.

Everyone immediately had their dinner, then went straight to bed in order to rest up for tonight. When morning came, nearly everyone was on the edge of their seats, but soon had breakfast, and finally got to work training.

Ian was practicing his Falcion against Punpom to see if his sword had any special properties. So far it worked only as an ordinary sword.

Then, it glowed a bright gold, which caused Ian's attack to completely catch Punpom off-guard. After a couple of powerful slashes, Punpom felt himself being pushed hard several inches away from his opponent.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem

 **This is the final chapter CuddlyChristina and I managed to write together. We managed to wrap the story up well though and I hope I'm not being too overconfident about that. Thank you for your support.**

XXX

This was a wondrous moment for everyone including Punpom because it was a tool that could slay the most powerful foe they'd face yet.

"I knew this was a legendary weapon!" Ian exclaimed.

"I know, right?" Henrietta asked.

"It seems to me that Kreyl is definitely no match for us!" Alexander added.

"All of us!" Ian said, and everyone cheered.

After their moment of success proving the blade had what it took to defeat their common enemy, Ian's army marched out of the town to fight Kreyl.

The journey was rather long, but the group persevered and kept going, until they finally reached Kreyl's castle.

"Looks pretty spooky." Mackie told Henrietta, who nodded in agreement.

Ian held Rica's hand tightly looking at the castle. He was suppose to be the leader and yet he didn't want to walce in without someone by his side to keep him safe.

Rica looked over at him and let out a very big smile, causing him to notice. "I have something to tell you...but I've a feeling we should wait until Kreyl is dead." she told him.

"Me too...and you're right about waiting." he replied, nodding his approval.

With that, everyone marched into the castle, all the while Kreyl watched from a balcony, ready to have his army battle against them.

"He's one lucky leader. He's still arrogant and oppressive for following that worthless king. I will be sure to wipe out all of his army one by one and then eradicate everyone from small villages slowly making my way to the Kings throne room."

As Kreyl rounded up his men, Ian and the others made their way inside the castle grounds, where they were greeted by a few enemies.

These enemies were horseback riders carrying swords or javelins. They may look strong with their superior numbers and steads, but all it took was an archer to knock the knights off their horses.

Using his crossbow, Punpom did all he could to knock them down. Once most of them hit the ground, the steeds neighed as they fled.

Ian and the others then wailed away at the horseback riders; for instance, Daniel, who was also equipped with a javelin, came face to face with one of them. Though the enemy caught him off guard at first, he was able to retaliate by giving him a few blows to the mid-area with his javelin.

Ian came to an intersection in the castle with both sides having a bad vibe to them he didn't want his army to go through.

"Do you think we should go both ways? I know it may sound dangerous, but..." Henrietta asked.

"If there are any traps, then we need to turn back to where we were." Trish added.

"No way would I make you go through something I wouldn't do. There's a wall on the end of these paths. When I reach the first one I'll come back and tell you if I found it to be safe."

Rica hugged Ian, she was worried he might not come back from his run.

"Just be careful!" she called out.

Ian nodded, before went to investigate the first of the two paths. When he reached the end, he found what appeared to be a chest. Upon opening it, he discovered what appeared to be a journal. As he took it, he discovered that it was Kreyl's journal, documenting his childrens's lives as they were growing up.

Realizing it would be a fascinating read after everything was said and done, Ian put it in a pocket, and decided to take the other path.

The other path on the other hand was a dangerous path but the traps were avoidable if Ian just told his army where not to step. He finished the path and he returned to his army.

"This way. Single file please."

The others followed his lead, making sure to avoid the traps as much as they can. When they finally cleared the path, they found themselves in the throne room belonging to Kreyl. Kreyl was in the room suspiciously alone without the help of his entire army.

"So you've come this far." he told them.

"A man of few words, huh? I'm sure they'll be your last!" Ian exclaimed.

"You jest." Kreyl said, pulling out his sword, which had a black hilt and a red blade.

Ian attacked with Falchion, the sword was glowing blue and it illuminated enough to blind people thanks to Ian's courage.

Kreyl groaned as his hands reached for his eyes; despite his attempts at slashing his opponent, he missed a few times, and was even close to wounding him.

Ian dodged the slash of Kreyl's blade right before it slashed through his bellybutton. He returned to swing back, but Kreyl dodged crouching out of the way.

This gave him the chance to slash at Ian, wounding him on his left arm. Thankfully, Ian was wielding the Falchion with his right hand.

"Daddy!" a voice called out.

The voice belonged to one of Kreyl's numerous children, a girl named Vlana. It seemed that she was on her father's side, but from the looks of it, she was clearly opposing him.

Ian couldn't strike down Kreyl now...not in front of his child. He had hope Kreyl would follow an idea like that.

Then, from out of nowhere, Vlana attacked Kreyl. "Why, daddy? Why?!" she cried as she unleashed a torrent of electric waves from her body.

This immediately caused Ian to ask, "I thought you were on his side. Why are you betraying him?"

"Because...he's insane...he's corrupt." she replied, looking as though she might cry.

"Foolish brat, you dare to oppose me?!" Kreyl asked as he slowly got up.

Tonya raised her crossbow and fired at Kreyl. He easily stopped it with a thrust of his sword in its direction. She gasped, and asked Vlana, "Who are you?!"

The girl replied, "My name is Vlana. I am one of Kreyl's many children, but I despise him for his evil intentions."

"Sounds to me she wants to help us rather than hurt us." Henrietta said. Vlana nodded her approval.

"No matter...I will get rid of you and your new friends, you little brat!" Kreyl exclaimed.

Mackie and Henrietta walked towards him with a double team fireball attack at the tyrannical king.

Kreyl was almost burnt to a crisp, and Vlana smiled, almost fearlessly. As she paralyzed him one more time, this allowed Ian to lunge straight at him, and slammed the blade of the Falchion into his chest.

The enemy collapsed to the ground, apparently on the verge of death. Vlana looked over at Ian and said, "You've done it."

"No...we've done it!" he exclaimed, pulling out the Falchion as he grinned.

He just took down an enemy no one else had the capabilities of defeating becaus they lacked the skill and weapon.

Then, from out of nowhere, more of Kreyl's children came in to attempt to attack Ian and the others, but were subdued by a mix of Vlana's paralyze attack and Henrietta and Mackie's bind magic.

The group of heroes and Vlana brought the imprisoned children along with them as they returned to Zofia, where they would receive another hero's welcome, and many were in awe of the young girl turning her back on her father.

Since Kreyl was the last enemy Zofia had in its land in the Kings' opinion, he welcomed the army by the time they made it to the village.

"Congratulations, you have successfully eradicated Kreyl and his minions!" the king exclaimed.

Ian smiled, and hugged him. "Thank you. We couldn't be any more happier!" he said.

Verinne approached Drake and kissed him full on the lips, catching him by surprise at first. He ended up returning the kiss, and smiled as he said, "Told you I'd be back."

"I can tell." she replied.

Rica then went over to Ian, and finally spoke. "I really wanted to say this to you...and uh..." before trailing off. However, she finally blurted out, "I love you, Ian!"

She finally wrapped her arms around him, and he smiled as he replied, "I love you too, Rica."

And thus, Zofia was at peace at long last, and Ian and Rica, Mackie and Henrietta, Drake and Verinne, even Alexander and Trish have begun to experience the joys of love and happiness.


End file.
